08-20-2020, 09:30 AM
** 20-Aug-2020 World View: Steve Bannon arrested
Given the way I was treated by Breitbart, this doesn't surprise me.
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/08/20/former-t...cheme.html
Former Trump advisor Steve Bannon arrested on charges of defrauding
donors in fundraising scheme
Published Thu, Aug 20 20209:38 AM EDT
Steve Bannon, the former chief executive of Donald Trump's 2016
presidential campaign, speaks to members of the media outside federal
court after testifying in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Friday, Nov. 8,
2019.
Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon has been arrested
after being charged with defrauding hundreds of thousands of donors
through their campaign "We Build the Wall."
Bannon, along with three of his associates were indicted by
investigators at the U.S. Southern District of New York on Thursday.
They allege that the group of conservative leaders defrauded donors
and that led to raising "more than $25 million to build a wall along
the southern border of the United States," according to the press
release.
The United States Postal Inspection Service assisted in the
investigation.
The others mentioned in the indictment are Timothy Shea, who in May
was announced as the Acting Administrator of Drug Enforcement
Administration, Brian Kolfage, a Iraq war veteran, and Andrew
Badolato.
The campaign was intended to raise money to help President Donald
Trump fulfill a campaign promise of building a border wall along the
border. Instead, prosecutors allege, that Bannon and his team profited
off of the arrangement.
Prosecutors claim that the defendants "collectively received hundreds
of thousands of dollars in donor funds from 'We Build the Wall,' which
they each used in a manner inconsistent with the organization's public
representations," according to the indictment.
"The defendants defrauded hundreds of thousands of donors,
capitalizing on their interest in funding a border wall to raise
millions of dollars, under the false pretense that all of that money
would be spent on construction," Acting U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss,
said in a statement. "While repeatedly assuring donors that Brian
Kolfage, the founder and public face of We Build the Wall, would not
be paid a cent, the defendants secretly schemed to pass hundreds of
thousands of dollars to Kolfage, which he used to fund his lavish
lifestyle. We thank the USPIS for their partnership in investigating
this case, and we remain dedicated to rooting out and prosecuting
fraud wherever we find it."
Kolfage, 37, a veteran and triple amputee, in late 2018 launched a
crowdfunding campaign on GoFundMe to build a wall along the
U.S.-Mexico border. His effort came amid a stalemate over government
funding on Capitol Hill, where Trump demanded that any spending
package include billions of dollars to go toward his proposed border
wall. The deadlock culminated in the longest partial government
shutdown in U.S. history.
Kolfage's effort quickly went viral and raised millions of dollars
from hundreds of thousands of donors – but GoFundMe threatened to
suspend the wall-building campaign unless Kolfage "identified a
legitimate non-profit organization into which those funds could be
transferred," according to the indictment
Given the way I was treated by Breitbart, this doesn't surprise me.
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/08/20/former-t...cheme.html
Former Trump advisor Steve Bannon arrested on charges of defrauding
donors in fundraising scheme
Published Thu, Aug 20 20209:38 AM EDT
Steve Bannon, the former chief executive of Donald Trump's 2016
presidential campaign, speaks to members of the media outside federal
court after testifying in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Friday, Nov. 8,
2019.
Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon has been arrested
after being charged with defrauding hundreds of thousands of donors
through their campaign "We Build the Wall."
Bannon, along with three of his associates were indicted by
investigators at the U.S. Southern District of New York on Thursday.
They allege that the group of conservative leaders defrauded donors
and that led to raising "more than $25 million to build a wall along
the southern border of the United States," according to the press
release.
The United States Postal Inspection Service assisted in the
investigation.
The others mentioned in the indictment are Timothy Shea, who in May
was announced as the Acting Administrator of Drug Enforcement
Administration, Brian Kolfage, a Iraq war veteran, and Andrew
Badolato.
The campaign was intended to raise money to help President Donald
Trump fulfill a campaign promise of building a border wall along the
border. Instead, prosecutors allege, that Bannon and his team profited
off of the arrangement.
Prosecutors claim that the defendants "collectively received hundreds
of thousands of dollars in donor funds from 'We Build the Wall,' which
they each used in a manner inconsistent with the organization's public
representations," according to the indictment.
"The defendants defrauded hundreds of thousands of donors,
capitalizing on their interest in funding a border wall to raise
millions of dollars, under the false pretense that all of that money
would be spent on construction," Acting U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss,
said in a statement. "While repeatedly assuring donors that Brian
Kolfage, the founder and public face of We Build the Wall, would not
be paid a cent, the defendants secretly schemed to pass hundreds of
thousands of dollars to Kolfage, which he used to fund his lavish
lifestyle. We thank the USPIS for their partnership in investigating
this case, and we remain dedicated to rooting out and prosecuting
fraud wherever we find it."
Kolfage, 37, a veteran and triple amputee, in late 2018 launched a
crowdfunding campaign on GoFundMe to build a wall along the
U.S.-Mexico border. His effort came amid a stalemate over government
funding on Capitol Hill, where Trump demanded that any spending
package include billions of dollars to go toward his proposed border
wall. The deadlock culminated in the longest partial government
shutdown in U.S. history.
Kolfage's effort quickly went viral and raised millions of dollars
from hundreds of thousands of donors – but GoFundMe threatened to
suspend the wall-building campaign unless Kolfage "identified a
legitimate non-profit organization into which those funds could be
transferred," according to the indictment
